Junior managers are fighting to deal with stress as they battle to juggle
demands of their own bosses and the staff they manage according to new
research

Middle managers are being squeezed from both sides as they battle to get their staff to handle the workloads they themselves receive from their own bosses.

The struggle to juggle these heavy demands has left one in 10 junior managers feeling “close to breaking point” and almost a quarter feeling stressed for more than a year, according to research by healthcare group Bupa.

The study of 6,000 employees in a range of industries across the country reveals a worrying picture of middle managers who are so stressed themselves they are unable to deal with problems their own teams are facing.

Mote than half – some 51pc – of managers said they feel “constantly worried” by the problems they have to deal with at work, 40pc said they have suffered depression as a result of being stressed and 43pc reported that the pressure they are under at work is too great.

And for many there is no escape from the strain once they leave the office, with 47pc saying that they often worry about work at home.

Dr Sandra Delroy, clinical director of mental health at Bupa, said: “It’s quite alarming as middle managers have stress coming at them from both directions – from those below them and above – especially as it is down to them to ‘make sure the job gets done’. They are the ones who the [pressure] is on to put plans into action.”

She added that some can feel “guilty” about speaking out over the pressures they face, and that bottling it up can lead to further problems.

“If left unchecked, stress can lead to more serious mental and physical health problems,” Dr Delroy said. “Managers can be signed off for months and months, which only leads to further problems for the company. Organisations are in a prime position to make it easier for employees to come forward and seek help.

“Stress needs to be a topic on the agenda. While managers might be feeling the pressure too, they can make a huge difference by encouraging open and honest dialogue with their team. Let your employees know that feeling stressed is not a sign of weakness.”

The research also identified the industries with the most stressed staff. Real estate topped the list, with 54pc of employees feeling the pressure, followed by accountancy at 50pc and then sales at 49pc.

People working in the legal sector were the least stressed, with 36pc of them saying it was a problem. However, this could mask the sector’s true state as only 5pc of those working in the law said they had spoken to bosses about stress levels, 38pc said they wouldn’t talk to someone about it because they feel they should handle it alone and 18pc were worried admitting there was a problem would be seen as a sign of weakness.

The most commonly cited cause of stress was workload, followed by trying to meet targets, with the backstabbing of office politics coming third. The factors cited least often were dealing with new technology, long journey’s to work and lack of opportunity to get promoted.